THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION.

A CONSIDERABLE interest attaches to the principles upon which public institutions of a scientific character are founded and conducted; and the recent issue of the Annual Report of the Board of Regents of the Smithsonian Institution for the year 1864, enables us to lay before our readers some facts relating to an establishment which has attained world-wide celebrity. The delay in publishing the report for 1864 is due to a fire which destroyed the documents in the secretary's office, besides occasioning other damage.

From an introduction first published in the report for 1847, and now reprinted, we learn that Mr. Smithson left certain property to the United States of America, "to found at Washington, under the name of the Smithsonian Institution, an establishment for the increase and diffusion of knowledge among men." Thus the institution so founded is not considered as a national establishment; but the government of the United States is a trustee, to "a bequest for the benefit of mankind," and for the perpetuation of the testator's name.

It seems to have taken eight years for preliminary consideration how the bequest should be applied; and this fact, so like scores in the old country, indicates pretty plainly whence the people of the new country came. It was at last decided that "the organization should be such as to enable the institution to produce results in the way of increasing and diffusing knowledge, which could not be produced, either at all, or so efficiently, by existing institutions in the country;" and it was further decided, that the arrangements should be susceptible of such modifications as changing circumstances might require.

To stimulate original research, it was proposed to "offer suitable rewards for memoirs containing new truths," and to appropriate annually a portion of income for the prosecution of particular researches, while it was hoped to assist the diffusion of knowledge by the publication of reports on physical science, moral and political science, literature, and fine arts.

The Act of Congress establishing the institution, contemplated, as we are told, the formation of a library and museum; and the Board of Regents at first resolved to divide the income into two equal parts, one of which was to be appropriated for the purposes already mentioned, and the other towards the library and museum, and subsequently rescinded this rule, and determined that the annual appropriation should follow the exigencies of the occasion. Smithson bequeathed for the institution $515,169 00c. upon which interest accumulated

during the eight years' incubation of the scheme. This money was placed in the United States' treasury, at six per cent. interest; and when the war led to a great issue of paper currency, and consequent depreciation of that form of money, the managers of the institution claimed to have their dividend paid in cash, which was acceeded to.

From the Secretary's Report, we learn that James Smithson was a graduate of Oxford, and devoted a long life to the advancement of science. His will did not define the modes in which the property bequeathed was to be employed, but simply laid down the general principles we have named. At first, the notion of applying the bequest to the foundation of an university commended itself to some minds. John Quincy Adams showed that this would not carry out the testator's intentions. The next proposition was to establish a large library and museum; but this plan was abandoned as too local in its influence. The Act of Congress, upon which the institution rests, finally decided that provision should be made for a library, gallery, and museum; but left the details, and the devising of measures to carry out other objects, in conformity with the terms of the bequest, to the Board of Regents.

The first mistake, according to the interesting report of Mr. Joseph Henry, the secretary, was to spend too much on a costly building. It was natural for the citizens of Washington to wish that such a building should be erected, but Mr Henry is probably quite right in his opinion that the Smithsonian funds could not afford it. The building, furniture, and grounds cost 250,000 dollars, spread over a series of years. By economical management in other respects, it was found that at the commencement of the war, the Smithsonian Institution possessed, after paying for its building, library, and establishing a large museum, and carrying on sundry active operations, an extra fund of 140,000 dollars. The secretary reports that it has been discovered that a building of one-fifth of the cost of the present one would have answered the purpose better; and he adds that, as the style chosen was much too expensive for the sum to be appropriated, the interior has been finished in wood and stucco, to allow for the cost of freestone outside.

The mistakes made in this matter closely resemble those we are accustomed to in this country; but notwithstanding all errors, the Smithsonian Institution is a great fact, and contributes very efficiently to the noble purposes of "increasing and diffusing knowledge among men," which its founder desired. The institution issues three classes of publications-a quarto series, Smithsonian Contributions to Knowledge, of which the fourteenth volume is nearly through the press; each volume contains one or more articles; an octavo series, Smithsonian

Miscellaneous Collections; and another octavo series, Smithsonian Reports. The quarto volumes contain elaborate and original investigations and researches; the Miscellaneous Collections comprise reports of the present state of knowledge on particular subjects, instructions for collecting and digesting facts, etc.; and the Reports, in addition to information concerning the proceedings of the institution, supply abstracts of lectures delivered before it, extracts from correspondence, original and translated articles on scientific subjects. The first two series are extensively presented to institutions and public libraries, exchanging their own publications; while the Reports,. which contain scientific matter in a more popular shape, are given away with great liberality.

In addition to the publication of the works mentioned, the Smithsonian Institution makes grants in aid of important books. In this way it assisted Agassiz's Contributions to Natural History, Gould's Astronomical Journal, etc., etc.

The Smithsonian Institution has likewise performed labours analogous to some of those undertaken by the British Association, stimulating "a skilful artisan" to construct standard metereological instruments, and organising a body of observers.

Astronomy, physics, and chemistry, have been promoted by various publications, by the encouragement of observation and experiment, and other means, including the keeping up of a laboratory, at present in use by Dr Wetherell for analyses of air from various public buildings.

Geographical, geological, and natural history researches have been promoted at the expense of the institution; and specimens of various kinds collected by its travellers have been arranged in its museum, and duplicates presented to the museums of other countries.

Previous to the commencement of the war, the lectures given at the institution were well attended; but for the last four years, the attendance was diminished, or was composed of persons seeking amusement rather than information;" a fact not to be wondered at, when only one institution in London, the Royal, can succeed in tempting any considerable number of persons to attend lectures worth listening to.

From the brief sketch we have given of the "Smithsonian Institution," it will be seen that it occupies a position very different from that of any single body in this country; and by its combination of various kinds of scientific and literary work, it seems admirably adapted to the wants of the United States, in which, though there is an important amount of scientific ability and energy, there are not, as in England, persons of wealth scattered all over the country, and able to avail themselves of various societies and institutions such as we possess.

Our great want in this country is for local museums, and really good libraries. Students who have not frequent access to London, or to one of the few towns in which large wellsupplied libraries exist, are very badly off, we might say disgracefully so, when we consider the wealth of the people, and the very small contribution from local taxation that would supply every town of ten or twenty thousand people with the principal works absolutely necessary for the study of physical and descriptive science, archæology, etc.

ARCHEOLOGIA.

THE value of PHOTOGRAPHY in delineating ARCHEOLOGICAL OBJECTS is undoubtedly great, especially on account of the quickness with which, by means of this art, we obtain accurate outlines, however elaborate the design; but the assistance thus given by photography is not always satisfactory, and this is especially the case with ancient inscriptions, in which a photograph by no means always replaces the original. Inscribed stones, and indeed any other stones, which have remained several centuries buried in the earth, or exposed to the weather above ground, have always undergone a certain degree of detrition of the surface which must seriously affect the exactness of the outlines inscribed upon them. The injury thus done is, of course, greater or less according to the character of the stone; but it is sometimes so great, that the inscription can no longer be read at all. All who are accustomed to deciphering Roman inscriptions on stone (excepting marble), know the extreme difficulty which they often present even to the most accomplished scholar. He is obliged to look at them at different angles, and therefore in different lights, and with different shades, and even then he only fixes the exact outline which the figure ought to have through his own great knowledge of the subject. How, then, is it possible that the true outline of the letters of such inscriptions can be visible to the eyes of men who are totally ignorant of the language in which they are written, and even of the class of objects to which they belong. Yet a very fatal practice appears to be arising of allowing the letters of such inscriptions to be painted in colours which contrast with the stone itself, we suppose with the idea of thus giving it a more effective appearance. In a communication to the March number of the "Gentleman's Magazine," Dr. Charlton, of Newcastle-on-Tyne, has pointed out the danger of this practice, and described a case in which it has been recently applied to a stone with a Runic inscription, at Baronspeke, near Bewcastle, in Cumberland. He tells us that "last year a photographer, accompanied (we believe) by an antiquary, visited the spot, and it seems that, in order to make the letters more visible, they painted the stone of a black colour, and then actually retooled

the whole of the inscription!" So that, as Dr. Charlton justly observes, “we cannot now judge of the original form of the letters." If, however, this is a practice to be blamed in cases where the letters can be read without much difficulty, how much more so must it be where the reading of the characters is so difficult that it has been the subject of a variety of different readings, and has given rise to several contradictory theories. Yet we have not only a recent example of such a case, but we have received a confession of it from the actor in it, who seems to be quite unconscious of the wrong he had been doing. In the March number of the INTELLECTUAL OBSERVER, in noticing Dr. Moore's book on the Newton stone, we remarked that that remarkable monument, since we first saw a drawing and cast of it, had evidently been tampered with, explaining our meaning by adding that, no doubt for the purpose of giving a more distinct photograph, the letters of the inscription had been painted white. In this case, such a proceeding was especially to be lamented, because, as the spirit of our review was to express our opinion that Dr. Moore had entirely mistaken the character of the inscription, we should naturally object to receiving his adjustment of the outlines of the letters, and, if possible, still less that of the photographer, who does not even profess to know anything about it. The latter addresses a letter to our publishers, which we shall simply lay before our readers. Mr. Alexander Riddle, for such is the name signed by the writer, corrects us, as will be seen, in one point only-we learn that the glaring white of the letters was produced, not by paint, but by chalk. It is a satisfaction so far, that the chalk will probably soon wash away, and, perhaps, do no injury to the inscription. But, nevertheless, the proceeding was a very wrong one, and we hope not frequently to hear of its being repeated. Here is the letter:

"In the number of the INTELLECTUAL OBSERVER for this month, there is an article on the 'Newton Stone,' by a 'T. W.,' in which he asserts that the inscription has been tampered with by painting, so as to enable the photographer to obtain a better copy of the characters; so that now, in place of the true inscription, you have only the outline of characters made by the painter. I am the person who did the photographs, and from a copy of which Dr. Moore had the copies taken for his book; but, before they were copied, that gentleman had the satisfaction of seeing the stone in reality, and comparing the copy taken by me, with the real inscription, and had no fault to find with it. I am sure a visit to the stone by 'T. W.' would satisfy him more than any cast or photograph, however perfect, can do. I had gone a distance of nearly thirty miles to take a photograph of the stone, and knowing that it was to go into the hands of many learned men, my object was to take as perfect a copy as I could. Owing to the grey colour of the stone and the grey light I had on reaching it, I saw it was absolutely necessary to try something to give effect to it. After taking a copy as it was, I then took a little chalk and rubbed into the bottom of the characters, the cutting of which varies from a quarter to three-eighths of an inch, and could not have much shade